Food People National United Peanut Eating Spoiled Company

Recently there have been many regional and national food-related "health scares" (something that makes people worry about their health) in the United States. Many of these have been food "recalls," which happen when a company realizes that the food it sells is unsafe and so it tries to get people to bring it back to the stores where it was purchased.

In the past, "sprouts" (very small, young plants, often eaten on sandwiches or in salads) and "spinach" (dark green leaves, often eaten in salads or cooked) have been recalled because they "harbor" (contain) a bacteria known as Escherichia coli that causes food poisoning and can make people very sick.

Early in 2009, the United States had a large peanut recall when a company called the National Peanut Corporation realized that some of its products were "contaminated" (infected, or made impure) with "salmonella," which is another type of bacteria that can cause food poisoning or even death. Many other companies used products from the National Peanut Corporations to make their own products, and all of those foods had to be recalled, too.

Previously, the United States had a "huge" (very large) recall of "beef" (meat from cows), because it found some meat that was infected with "mad cow disease" (a disease that can be transmitted from cows to humans when humans eat beef).

All of these food recalls have "raised concerns" (made people worry) about food safety and the government's ability to "track" (follow the movements of) food from its "origin" (where something is made) to where it is "consumed" (eaten).